British Air Force Typhoon jets have joined forces with French aircraft in a coordinated attack targeting an subterranean weapons facility in Syria operated by the Islamic State group (IS), as stated by the UK Ministry of Defence.
The facility, pinpointed through intelligence, was believed to be containing munitions and bombs, the statement said, and was positioned in mountainous terrain just north of the ancient city of Palmyra in central Syria.
"Our aircraft used Paveway IV guided bombs to strike a series of entry passages down to the facility... initial indications suggest the objective was successfully hit," the MoD said.
There was no indication of any harm to civilians in the attack late on Saturday and each participating jet made a safe return, the defence officials confirmed.
The British jets were backed up by a Voyager refuelling tanker.
The Islamic State group - also known as Daesh - established jihadist rule over significant areas in both Syria and Iraq before its territorial defeat in 2019.
"This operation shows our UK leadership, and commitment to work closely with allied nations, to eliminate any re-emergence of Daesh and their harmful and extremist ideologies in the region," Britain's Defence Chief the minister said.
UK warplanes have performed overwatch operations over Syria to "prevent any efforts to regroup" of IS following its defeat at the Baghuz confrontation in 2019, the authorities noted.
"I want to thank every member of British forces involved in this mission for their professionalism and their valour," he commented. "They were part of thousands of UK service members stationed over the festive period. This operation, to take out dangerous terrorists who pose a risk to our security, shows how our armed forces are ready to step up, throughout the year, ensuring Britain's security within its borders and strong abroad."
In December, the American forces carried out what it termed a "major assault" on IS targets in Syria, following an ambush claimed the lives of two US troops and a local interpreter in Palmyra.
The United Nations says IS still boasts roughly 5-7 thousand combatants in both countries.
